Rotbtd- Epic
by Corona Frost
Summary: I am Hiccup. This is my story. Being the biggest gang on the streets is not exactly easy. Especially if you're hiding the fact that you are also the most popular band the world has ever seen. Particularly when your old friends like to hold grudges. The pic is from doodle debz on tumbler
1. Chapter 1: Jack is Caught

**I don't update much, so don't expect to see anything new before three weeks. I support Jakcunzel and Merricup, so if you don't think that you're up to reading about either of the pairs, you are welcome to stop. I am in school, so please feel free to criticize me, as it not only helps with my fanfic, but also my school reports. But I'm only in school, so no bad language. Thanks!**

To live on a new level, you must learn to _think _on a new level- Anon

I stared at the screen monitor. From the screen gazed two bright, emerald green eyes. The eyes had a soft look. They were filled with compassion and love. I zoomed into one eye. In the reflection, I could see the image of a boy. The details were unclear, but there was one thing for sure. They were in LOOOOOOVE. Finally, I had found where he snuck off to every night. Finally, I could say things like the (mostly untrue) things he says about Merida (a certain friend who I am _not_ fond of) and me. Finally, he had made a mistake that had cost him his 'I'll never fall in love' claim.

My eye cameras were the pride of our gang. It allowed me to watch everything that Jack did through his eyes. I could also view his emotion, read by his pulse. I could see how much attention he was paying to an object through the amount of times he blinked (right now, the scale was reading _really_ high). The only problem was that he could take it off if he felt like it. Apparently, he had forgotten.

Now that all the cards were in my hand, all I had to do was play them right. I was no idiot, and I knew that I was not any good at teasing anybody at all, no matter how long I had awaited this moment. To my benefit, I also knew the person who could tease Jack to perfection, using all the information to her advantage. But if I asked her, there would be a price (say, five turns with the dishes). That's why I needed a plan. Fortunately, I already had one.

There was a light thud in the next room. I waited, zooming out on the picture to reveal her whole face. I was ready. The door behind me opened, and I dropped the picture (which was, by the way, just a video on pause), hiding it behind another file, as if I was keeping a secret. It was important that I timed this with precision, important to the plan, that is. I heard footsteps behind me. Quickly, I spun around, putting on my best (not very good) innocent face. Merida was standing in front of me, hand placed firmly on her hips.

'What were ya' doin'?' She inquired suspiciously. Her red eyebrows were lowered, her blue eyes were squinting. A nasty smile had spread itself across her round face. Oddly enough, I liked her smile, and would have described it as chic, or some other weird, modern word with the same meaning (as there are so many). But, as things stood, the smile was nothing but nasty (but more in the cute, teasing, way rather than the evil one) and I will call it what it is. I was still contemplating the nastiness of her smile when I realized that her eyebrows were raised, and she looked slightly concerned. Losing my train of thought, I reeled for something to say.

'What am I…doing? …Well… you see…I…Um…Nothing?' To say the least, I could have kicked myself (if my foot could reach). I was supposed to make her curious, not act like a blundering idiot(maybe it should be 'I _would_ have kicked myself'…?). Merida was now looking at me with that half-worried-half-amused look, like I was a two-year-old who had played in the mud. I decided to reassure her of my sanity with a smile, which turned out looking like I had just eaten a whole raw fish(I've done it before, but that's another story).

By now, Merida was walking towards me, I write towards _me_, even though I know that she was not walking towards me. But I like to let myself believe that she was walking towards me, though I could never dream of such a thing (but I _can_, so 'I never _would_ dream of such a thing'). I spun my chair around, as if to protect my laptop from prying eyes (shouldn't that be prying _hands?_). Gently, Merida took my hands off the key board with her slim, perfect hands.

Her arms reached from behind me, one from each side of my head. Her chin rested in my hair, her breath rustling it ever so slightly. Stray curls of her red hair swayed in the breeze, tickling my neck and ears. She was pressing herself on my back, her warmth spreading to me.

She switched tabs revealing the video. I had taken a lot of care to choose the right part of the movie to start from. The screen showed the girl's deep, green eyes, and, more importantly, Jack's reflection in her (deep) green eyes. Merida snorted loudly.

I had to smile. Merida's snort was one of those beauties of life. One of those things that could make me smile like nothing else could. There were Toothless, my cat's purr, Jack's carefree laugh, and Merida's happy, unladylike (loud) snorts. These were the sounds that made my heart laugh. These were the sounds of perfection.

On the screen, the girl was twisting a long lock of golden hair around her finger, while babbling on about something we couldn't hear. She looked nervous, as if she didn't know if she should be saying what she was saying (but it _looked_ like she was babbling). We saw Jack's hands reach out to take hers. They were alien hands, as pale as the moon and as cold as ice. He pulled her to her feet, and we could see his devilish smile in her eyes. She gave him a quizzical look as he placed his hand on her hip and slowly spun her around to his own silent music.

Slowly, gently, he led her in a small, uncomplicated dance (I didn't know he could dance!). As they continued dancing, they started getting slower… and slower. Until they finally stopped moving around the room. They swayed slowly, back and forth and back and forth and back…

The edges of the video started getting blurry as Jack's eyes began to close. Their faces moved closer to each other. Her eyes were half-closed and they filled up the screen. I could hear Merida's short, quick breaths as her excitement grew. Then the screen went blank (in case you didn't notice yet, Jack just smooched his princess).

Silence filled the air. It was odd because I expected Merida to be gloating ('They did it! After all they teasing! He _kissed _a girl!') But instead, there was silence. I waited. Merida's chin slipped off my head, and she slid onto the chair next to me. I really didn't know what she was doing or why she was doing it (it occurs to me that she might have been jealous of Jack…?), but I did realize that she was sitting close to me, her head on my chest.

I could feel my heart thundering inside me, and I wondered if she could hear it (I have asked her several times, but she just smiles sweetly, ruffles my hair, and changes the subject). I looked down, but all I could see was her wild red curls. I closed my eyes, digging my face into her hair. She smelled distinctly of ginger. I put my arm around her waist, pulling her closer than I ever have before. She raised her head, looking at me straight in the eye. Of course, I have looked her in the eyes before, but this was different.

Her sky-blue eyes were liquid with a strong emotion, with love. Her small, pink mouth smiled up at me. Her soft little hands reached up behind my neck as she pushed against me gently, as if she was afraid of scaring me away. A breeze blew her ginger hair around her neck, and the sunset behind her made her look like a heroine from a movie. She was beautiful.

I tucked a piece of her bright hair behind her small ear. She blushed lightly pink, her fingers unconsciously twisting a piece of my hair behind my neck around them. I smiled as her hair fell back down stubbornly (one day, I will see why her hair does that).

_Thud. Click._ Jack had chosen now, of all times, to come back. Merida jumped off my lap, blushing completely red, staring at me guiltily. Her eyes darted around my table quickly, searching for a way to convey a message. She grabbed a paper and pencil from the table just as Jack knocked. Quickly, she scribbled something down, clipped the pen to it, and handed it to me. Then she smoothed her hair (which did nothing whatsoever), and checked herself in the mirror to make sure that she wasn't the colour of a rose. Then she opened the door.

'Jack! Where have you been? We were so worried!' Merida stood in front of the door, blocking his entry (she should've considered going into acting).

Jack shot her a puzzled look, and she stared back innocently. He would never guess what had happened just seconds before he knocked. 'I was out…uh… in my usual spots.'

'We were looking everywhere, and when we couldn't find you, we got so scared. We thought you got angry and left.' I f I hadn't known better, I would have thought that Merida was going to cry (how did she do that?!). Jack, on the other hand, was caught. And he knew it. He took a cautious step back. Merida leaned forward, her mouth near his ear. 'Where were you, Jack?'

He couldn't see it, but see was smiling lightly . He didn't answer her question.

'Jack?' she pulled away, hiding her smile, 'Where were…? DON'T MOVE!'

She grabbed on his chin, leaning his head back. His face said that he was looking for any distracting from the subject of where he had been. I didn't blame him.

But still, you had to wonder what she was doing.

'Jack! Your left_ eye_ is the wrong colour!' Jack pulled away from her, aghast. He stared at her for a few seconds. Suddenly, his eyes went wide. His pale mouth formed a small 'o'. Merida smiled at him. Jack closed his eyes and swore…then he cursed…then he swore some more.

Maybe I should explain. As perfect as my eye cameras are, Jack and Merida are not a pair willing to compliment. Only a day after they received their cameras, they each came to me with their complaint: The camera caused a slight discolouration in the eye that they wore it on. In my defence, the camera did not discolour they eye, they just made the eye look slightly inactive. Jack's eyes lost their mischief, while Merida's lost their shine. After I explained this with great tact and care, all Jack and Merida concluded was that it made their eyes look lazy. I had left it at that.

To put it simply, Merida was telling Jack that he was wearing the camera when he visited his dearly beloved. And (not surprisingly) Jack was depressed. He had only one question to ask.

'How much did you see?'

'Enough.' I stated vaguely, hoping that Merida would let it go.

Unfortunately, Jack's years of teasing us were not lost on Merida. 'Oh, there was a lot to see. An' ah' did see you _kiss the girl._ Who was she anyway? We also saw ya' dancing an'… Jack? Why are you wearing _LIP GLOSS?!'_

'Lip gloss? I am not wearing…' Jack trailed off, realizing what had happened, he clutched his face as it turn red. Angry red.

This was my cue. When Merida's voice got quiet and hard or Jack started holding his bright red face, it was time for me to stop the fight. I pulled Merida away from the door, led Jack inside, and closed the door.

Jack plopped on the couch, looking quite deflated. I had to admit that I would have been if I was in his position. Merida, on the other hand, seated herself comfortably on one of the three wooden chairs around the table. She put her chin on her hands and gazed at him expectantly. Jack grunted in reply. It was time for my trump card.

'Jack? I don't mean to pry, but _she_ didn't seem the type of person who would let you off without a… reminder of some sort.' I paused, 'A letter, maybe?' I got the wanted response, and Jack stared at me, as if he didn't know how I had figured out. He didn't even see Merida sneaking up on him.

About ten minutes later, Merida was sitting on top of a bean bag, which just so happened to be sitting on Jack. She was holding a pink letter triumphantly above her head. The front of the letter had a little red heart painted onto the top of it and had Jack's name written in a loopy, romantic scrawl (ew!). I had been right.

Merida giggled lightly, holding the envelope in front of Jack's face, just out of the reach of his teeth. His arms were pinned under the bean bag, but that didn't keep him from growling like a wild animal (he seemed to be trying to imitate an angry bear). Merida withdrew, sniffing the letter delicately.

'Perfume, huh?' you could hear her smile in her voice as she elbowed the bean bag (which was the closest she could get to elbowing Jack without getting her hand bitten off). She flipped it over, slipping a long, red finger-nail under the flap.

'Hey Hic!' she hollered at me, 'We hit the _jack_pot, he hasn't even opened it yet.' I rolled my eyes, used to Merida's theatrics by now.

'Just tell him what you want and get over with it, Mer!' I yell back. Mer was my nickname for Merida, and both Jack and I knew that she wasn't going to read the letter right now. She was going to blackmail him.

Merida's smile faded as she looked out the window, probably thinking of the many things she could request in return for the love-letter. 'I want to meet her' her voice was quite, but we both heard her. I was surprised. First, it had not been in my original plan for Merida to bribe Jack. Second, I could not imagine why she wanted to meet the girl.

Apparently, Jack had the same question, 'Why do you want to meet her?' he blurted, looking baffled. Merida paused and took a deep breath.

'The reasons are my own. Will you or will you not take me to see her?'

'I want to know why you want to go.'

'Fine, then.' Merida sighed, fingering the letter.

'Tell me why you want to see her.' Jack pressed, apparently having forgotten about his letter and more interested in Merida's concealed intention. Merida thought about it.

'Tell me her name.' She demanded. Jack shrugged.

'Her name's Rapunzel.'

Merida sighed, slipping off the bean bag, still clutching the letter, 'I don't want to meet for any reason… in particular. I just want to meet another girl,' she said quietly, 'I want to meet someone I can paint my nails with, of giggle over secrets with. I love you guys, but sometimes…' she was staring at her nails with a distant expression. Jack sat up, the bean bag still on his lap. I got up, sitting on the floor next to her. There was a warm silence for a few seconds.

'Rapunzel lives alone in a tower.'

'So?'

'Sooo… if all girls are the same—,'

'They aren't'

'If all girls are the same… then she must feel just like you do' Jack finished, looking immensely proud of himself.

'All girls aren't the same, ya' baboon.'

Jack shrugged; 'I guess that that would explain why I don't find you attractive… even though Hiccup does.' he finished smugly. I sighed, Jack really knew how to ruin the moment.

Merida raised her eyebrows, 'Forget I said all that Mumbo-Jumba'. Are you going to take me or not?'

'I'll take you.'

'Good.' She stated firmly, 'Ah'm going to get ready.' Merida left, going in to her room to pack, a few minutes later, she would come out to get the food. We both knew the routine.

'Rapunzel lives with her mother in a tower.' Jack stated, leaning back on the bottom of the couch (we were still on the floor) and looking immensely proud of himself. I shook my head, wondering at Jack's cool way of lying.

'What are you going to do when she finds out?' I asked, ready for Jack to proudly state a simple plan that he thought was genius.

'Her mother's gone on a trip for three days and Merida won't go back after this. Besides, Rapunzel hasn't exactly met a girl her age before. I'm sure that it'll be fine.' I rolled my eyes, hiding the hard fact that I would love to have his confidence in just one thing that I do.

Merida came out of her room, plopping on the ground next to Jack. She handed him the letter, mumbling something about 'sorry' and 'forgot'. Jack took it from her carefully, flipping it over. It was sealed. He laughed, and hugged her tight. Don't get me wrong, but I wasn't in the least surprised. Jack and Merida always acted like that. That was their type. They are the 'touchy-feely' type. I am the 'let's talk about it' type. And sometimes, I'm not even that.

Sometimes, I wished I was their type. Especially times like now.

They pulled away from each other. When we were younger, there used to be an awkward moment as it dawned on them that they had left me out of their brother-sister moment. Not anymore. As a rule, the only physical contact I made was getting a (hard) pat on the back from Jack. I didn't make contact with Merida. Until today.

'Let's go!' Merida called, already scrambling to the door. Jack followed, grabbing his shepherd's cane from the couch, where he had dropped it before Merida had attacked him. As soon as he picked it up, a flash of blue shot through it. I winced guiltily.

Jack noticed, 'It's Okay, man. I'm used to it. Besides, it's turned out to be really helpful.' He laughed. I smiled as that warm brotherhood feeling came across me. I loved how the two of them knew me better than I knew myself. I loved how they treated me as though I was amazing, like they were. Even though I wasn't. I knew I wasn't.

Once again, I remembered what I was. I remembered what I promised I never would.

**I kinda wanted a lovey-dovey Jackunzel relationship and a down-to-earth Merricup. :) I hope you enjoyed! Chapter two might take a while…**


	2. Chapter 2: History

I suppose leadership at one time meant muscles; but today it means getting along with people –Mahatma Ghandi (if you don't know who he is, look it up)

My life always hadn't been this perfect. After all, no one's life is perfect (I think). I come from a small village in Greenland. How did I get here? Well, it's a long story.

From the time that I could crawl, I've been… different (like my dad always said). I was small (As Merida would put it, 'wee lamb') and I was looked down on by all the other Vikings, even the ones who were younger than me. So, at the tender age of ten, I stole away at the dead of night. Regrettably, I was caught by a girl called Astrid, who promptly called the whole group of 8-11 year olds in the village to rebel with me. I didn't care. I had to get out of here, even if I dragged the whole town with me.

So, my adventure started. After seeing that I was a good leader, the younger kids (without the consent of the older ones) put me in charge. Until we reached Chicago, that is.

When our sea journey came to an end, everyone decided (without _my_ consent) that we needed a leader who was tough, tougher than me. Astrid was chosen. After that, my life went downhill. Fast.

I was a tool to everyone in the 'gang' that we had made. I was just there. Sure, they listened to my plans, but nobody treated me like an individual, with my own life. I was a thing, an object to be used only when needed. I was lucky that they had saved me, not the other way around. Slowly, I started to drift back to what I had been before.

Alone.

As time passed, another problem rose. Astrid was becoming obsessed with revenge, after somehow getting it into her head that it was the chief of our village's fault that we left. One night, I made up my mind. There was no way that I was going to put up with this anymore. But this time, I won't run away. I was going to make my point very clear.

Astrid's room was next to mine, and I went in without knocking. Astrid was practicing her axe on the bed post. When I told her that I did not like how this all had worked out, she looked like she wanted to practice on me.

'I can't change what they have chosen! And they have chosen to put me in charge!' she screeched. Apparently, she knew that this gang was dead without me willing to help. I still hadn't told her that I was leaving. I needed her to send me away. I needed her to be blamed, not to blame me.

'I'm just saying that I don't really like this. I came so that I could break the rules, just like you.'

'There is nothing about you that will be just like me. Ever.'

I sighed, annoyed that she was avoiding the point 'I don't like it here, Astrid.'

'So then why don't you just leave?!' Astrid's face went poppy-red, her teeth grit. I smiled calmly; I had known that she would get tense, then angry. Then she would send me away. I grabbed my pack and left the abandoned house that they lived in. Now, she could not make me the point for revenge.

Three months later, I found a shivering bundle of whiteness on the road. It was a pitiful sight. Looking at Jack would have made you want to cry. His shirt was torn up and he had cuts and bruises all over his body. His eyes were puffy with tears of pain. But it was not in my nature to leave a helpless child to die.

My first problem that I had with Jack was that he was heavy. I had to drag him home on a plank of wood. My second problem was treating him. I had found an old warehouse to live in for the time being, and the provisions were not very abundant. I tore up most of my bed sheets for Jack.

Jack's hoodie was found discarded on the ground near Sally's Steaks, the local beef shop. It was material that I could not afford, and I decided that Jack could use it. He never took it off after that. I didn't know that I was saving a boy that would learn to love me with all my faults.

After a little time, I managed to get myself a job as a newspaper boy, which kept at least one meal per day. Jack wasn't very old, but as soon as I took off the bed-sheet-bandages it became apparent that Jack could help me a lot. Jack may be wiry, but it was hard, as I peeled strips of fabric from his body, to not notice the he had muscles. And as soon as he had healed completely, we got to work.

We (or Jack) spent the next week moving boxes around the large room, creating a space hidden by the boxes.

That week, I learned more about Jack than I had ever known about anyone before. One of my favourite stories (that I like to remind him of) was when Jack was trying to move a particularly heavy box. I did my part, but (as a result of being…me) I could not really help that much. While moving the heavy crate, Jack suddenly lost his nerve, kicking the box and yelling a string of obscene words at it. I stood there, staring at him as he vented his anger at the strongbox, and I wondered if he thought this was making it lighter. With a final, vengeful cry, Jack ripped a plank off the box. And swore as something heavy landed on his foot.

Out fell a book. I picked it up, staring at it. Then I looked in the hole that Jack had made in the wood. _Books. _Suddenly, a world of knowledge had opened itself to me. I picked a blue one with a leather cover out of the box with reverence.

'Do you know what this is?' I asked, gasping, my breath taken by the sight.

Jack stopped blowing on his splintered hands long enough to give me an odd look and an answer. 'They're just books' he stated, raising his eyebrow.

'Just books' I whispered again.

'You need some more sleep.' Jack mumbled, shaking his white hair. I smiled at him.

It didn't take long for Jack and me to overcome our differences. He was just a year younger than me, but didn't treat me like authority because he was taller by one and a half centimetres (although I think that it's his hair, which sticks up, whereas mine lies flat).

Two weeks later, we did our first break-in. We were very careful about what we took. After all, you never know how much one plastic necklace could mean to a little girl. I planned it, and Jack did it. And he was good. He would be in and out in a matter of seconds, holding just enough for a week.

Although I could hack computers with ease, we never stole stuff with personal data. But we did steal an occasional TV. Generally, we got in the news for being the guys who only ransacked fridges, and didn't even leave a mess.

A month after our first break-in, Jack stole a cat. The thing was half-dead, not part of a plan, and was a gift for me. It was handed to me with a small speech that I couldn't hear and a lot of looking at his toe nervously. To finish, Jack cleared his throat,

'Do you like it?' he asked attentively.

I told him that I loved it. But I didn't tell him the real reason that I loved it. The reason was that Jack had just showed me that he thought of me like no one else did. It told me that he didn't see my faults. But, I only said OK to keeping the cat because it looked like the owners hadn't kept it very well. I named it Toothless (don't ask why) and (Jack said) paid more attention to it than to myself.

It wasn't long before we adopted the last member in our family.

Jack and I were taking a midnight stroll when we heard a child whimpering. Before I go on, let me get this straight- you don't hear crying children in this part of town. If you hear a child, it's because he's threatening someone with a gun, not crying. Crying was illegal in the streets, crying was a sign of weakness.

The two of us found ourselves wandering, for the first time, into another gang's territory. This wasn't a gang like ours, this was a real gang.

We found the carriage about an hour later. It was on its side, and you could see bullet-holes in the side. Then we saw her. Lying over the body of a dead woman with black hair was a girl with curly red hair. Her tears dropped from her blue eyes onto the face of the woman. Her round face was wet with her tears and had blood from the bullet-holes in the woman smeared across it. We knew that we couldn't just leave her there because the gang would kill her in the morning.

'Hey, what's your name?' I talked gently, not wanting to scare her. But my voice was hoarse from the sight.

She looked up, and I realized that she must have been eight or nine, tops. I felt cold in the pit of my stomach. She glanced back at the dead woman. Her young eyes made a decision to trust us for some reason.

'Good-bye, Momma' she whispered. She had the voice of and angel, sweet and innocent. Too sweet and innocent to have to deal with this.

Slowly, she turned around and spread her arms, asking to be lifted out. Jack, tall for his age and quite strong, helped her. We walked home in silence.

When she got home, she asked Jack a query we will never let her forget. As she stared at him with awe in her eyes, she whispered one question,

'Are you an angel?'

The next day, the police found every member of that gang drugged and tied up beside a lake. With them was a note:

Dear Police,

This is a gang that has killed a mother, but left her weeping child. We have taken the child, as we do not want her to be put in an orphanage and raised without love. Rather, we will raise her as our own. We hope you will find a suitable punishment for this gang,

With Love (I Mean _Hate_),

_The Bloodbenders_

Jack made the name himself, but it stuck. We were never caught or seen, but all the gangs feared us. No one knew where we lived, no one cared. If they knew, our neighbours would probably pack up and leave.

After a while, we had managed enough loot to buy a flat on the third floor of a little building in the suburbs. It was large and luxurious, with five bed-rooms and a state-of-art kitchen (we kept all the rooms clean, but didn't use most of them. We were simply known as a bunch of shady millionaires in the apartment.

Our second secret identity came about when Jack and I figured that we were naturals with certain instruments. I was good with the acoustic guitar (_never_ electric), the grand piano (_never _keyboard), and a few types of bells. Jack did the electric guitar (_never _acoustic), the keyboard (_never_ the grand piano), and heavy drum.

Jack was the one who had thought it up first, but Merida gave him the idea by showing us that she could sing. Merida had a unique voice. Strong, passionate and forceful. She could make you cry so hard that you had to sit down. Or sing so loud that you would have to cover your ears. She was beautiful to listen to.

Although it was never said out loud, it was understood in our home that I was a kind of 'father' for the other two. And, I have to admit, it wasn't easy.

Jack was a boy and younger than me, so I could give him advice on most of the stages he went through. One thing that Jack did beat me to was starting to see girls in a (disgusting) new light. When Jack turned twelve, Jack and I talked about falling in love, because Jack was going through that stage. But even now, many years late, I have not gone through that stage.

Merida was a good deal harder. I could not advise her on things that she was going through because I had not gone through them myself. But she didn't take a romantic flip like the one Jack had done, even though the two of them went through similar stages of anger, sensitivity, and seclusion. Each of them has had one or two days where they were in their own little worlds, and did not want to see anyone. There was one that Jack and I will never forget.

Merida had been alone all morning. She hadn't told us why, and we couldn't find out why. Jack and her had not even fought yesterday, so we just stood there and brain-stormed. Jack, who was never good at brainstorming anyway, decided to google it. 'My sister locked herself in her room and won't tell us why'.

After finding results on girls cutting themselves, Jack got desperate. He may have acted like he hated her, but Jack really thought of Merida as a sister. He pounded on the door wildly, yelling the only thing that came to mind.

'It's OK, Merida; Hiccup thinks you're beautiful, even if you don't.' The door opened with a bang.

Jack lost three of his (snow-white) teeth that day.

But the most important thing that happened on that eventful day was that Merida grabbed the nearest object (a hose, of all things) and unleased its fury upon Jack's hollering head. Unfortunately, it was not a water hose. Clear, bluish liquid (my latest experiment) sprayed all over Jack, who could do nothing but scream in horror.

'Merida!' I yelled, 'put that down!' Merida had been watching the whole thing with the growing fear that she might be the cause of Jack's death. She turned the hose off, dropping it on the floor, making her way to him. She touched his face.

'Hiccup! The…_stuff_ has gone into him! I can't see it! I think his skin absorbed it! What do I do?! This is my all my fault! I'm sorry Jack! I'm so sorry.' Merida's voice faded from my mind as it went into a state of complete panic (not a usual thing). For the first time, I had no idea what to do. My brain automatically started to run over the possible things that could be happening to Jack.

Then the floor started getting covered in frost. Basically, Merida had just given Jack the power to control snow. And he loved it.

Before I knew it, Jack had gone from a cute boy to a handsome teenager. And Merida had made the transfer from an adorable little girl to a beautiful young woman. As far as I could tell, I had not changed.

We had our ups and down, fun times and bad times. Jack had managed to convince himself (I guess I have to say that he was right, considering the last chapter) that I was mad about Merida (simply because he wasn't. Therefore, he explained, logically, I must like her). Merida and Jack had their fights, but I held them together. I would never let either of them go. Even if Merida was rough and reckless. Even if Jack was flirty and careless. I loved them. And they were all I had left.

Now, I would tell you some stories about me, but I think that my life is rather uneventful (except for two teens that make it much more interesting).

One day, (I hope) they will leave those childish fancies behind. Maybe one day Merida and Jack will be able to keep away from each other's necks without me. After all, they have to mature some time. Right?


	3. Chapter 3: Deal With It

If you're not willing to hold a toilet brush, you have no business holding a microphone- Mike Donehey (Tenth Avenue North)

Merida was hopping from foot to foot. Literally. I hadn't seen her that excited since we went to Cedar Point when she was nine.

'Come _on, _Jack! Stop lagging, you're the only one who knows the way!' (Not strictly true, but Merida would have my hide if she knew that I had lied to her (but I didn't lie, really, I just refrained from mentioning the topic)). So, for now, Jack was the only one who knew the way.

Stuffing his hands in his pockets and muttering under his breath, Jack took the lead. He started down a dark alleyway. I smiled; leave it to Jack to lead us in a wild goose chase just out of spite.

'Jack, I saw you come from the other direction.' There was a sly tilt to my voice as Jack scowled and stomped in the other direction, muttering something about an 'over-confident smarty-pants'.

We made quick progress, or rather, they did. Merida and Jack were both gifted with the amazing gifts of speed and endurance. Already, they were way ahead of me, and neither had broken a sweat. I was huffing and puffing and panting. I was also gasping for breath, covered in sweat, and in desperate need of a bath.

So, Jack and Merida found a cart to drag me the rest of the way in. They took turns pulling the cart because I refused to sit alone.

The house was nice (though I had seen it many times before), towering approximately five stories high (Or so I told Merida, even though I knew that it was four stories high). It was made of grey stones and a purple-tiled roof. It was thinner than most modern houses and could be accurately described as a tower instead of a house. In short, it looked like it had been imported from the 4th century (14th, to be accurate).

'State-of-art' I muttered sarcastically. Jack grinned at me, and grabbed the end of the rope ladder hanging from the window. Then he paused.

'Merida? If you ever become a good friend of Rapunzel's, do you think you could do me a favour and get her to move her big butt out of that tower?'

Merida gave him a sideways glance, looking concerned, 'She never leaves? How does someone as jumpy as you put up with that?' She paused, apparently rethinking her next question, 'Are we going to climb up on a rope ladder?'

'You will' Jack replied, his eyes glinting, 'Only you.'

Merida grinned, shooting me a sympathetic grin as she grabbed the rope ladder and starting her way up at an amazing speed. I could never climb at that kind of speed.

That's why, a second later, Jack' strong arms grabbed me and lifted me up to the window.

The first thing I saw was a flash of golden-blonde flash past me. I heard a door up a set of stairs close just a Merida popped over the edge.

I shot Jack a confused look, and he shrugged. Merida was too busy scanning the room to take part in the 'conversation'.

'Well Jack, ah' hope that you have a good excuse for—'

The blonde blur came whirling out of the top room and stopped in front of the spot where I stood brushing myself off. She was more beautiful in person than she was in Jack's eye camera.

Golden-blonde hair stretched luxuriously down past her knees, trailing behind her into the darkness. Her emerald eyes were soft and tranquil, like two calm pools, like twin lagoons. They darted nimbly from me to Merida and back, completely ignoring Jack as she took in her two new visitors.

'Jackie, I thought you said you wouldn't have time to come again today…?'

Jack shrugged, 'Things changed.' He stated, glancing at Merida to be sure that she knew that he did not approve of 'things changing'.

'You also told me that you lived with two _boys_' she continued, waving a hand at Merida.

'I lied' Jack stated in the matter-of-factly tone. The girl (Rapunzel) raised her eyebrows. Jack rolled his eyes, 'Because if I did tell you, you would want to see Merida, and I would never hear the end of it.'

She nodded sagely, 'And what's his name?' she asked, nodding at me.

Jack shot me a look, his ice-blue eyes asking if he should tell her my real name or lie. I shrugged.

After my name had been rendered its due of laughter, the girls retreated to Rapunzel's room 'to catch up' (on what totally beats me, as they had only just met and would have to tell their life stories to do anything close to 'catch up') and have 'girl talk' (which also beats me, as 'girl talk' can't be that different from 'boy talk'). Only an hour later, we could hear them giggling like a bunch of school girls (I say a bunch because each had a series of different laughs, ranging from high to low and soft to harsh). Jack's eyes met mine, asking the question. Swiftly, stealthily, Jack climbed the stairs to the room and stood by the door as I made my way up a snail's pace.

'So how long have you known him?'

'Oh, just about a year, you know. I couldn't believe it when he said that the boys he lived with hadn't tried to find out where he went'

'I didn't think that he'd ever find a girl willing to go out with him anywhere. And Hiccup, well… He's just more of the trusting type; he would never suspect Jack of anything'

'You don't like Jack? Really? If I lived with him, I would probably be madly in love with him by now'

'Not if you knew what he looks like when he wakes up every morning' Merida said seriously. The girls burst into a fit of happy giggles as they pictured it. Jack's face went bright red.

'So what about you?' Rapunzel asked through a delicate, yet un-lady-like snort.

'What about me?' Merida shot back through a fit of helpless giggles.

'Do you like him?' Suddenly, the room seemed more serious.

'Who? Hiccup?' There was a pause, and I imagined Rapunzel nodding her mild little head, 'He's sweet and caring… But both I and Jack think of him as some kind of a foster parent… Kinda like our father.'

'Uh-huh…'

'I'm serious, Rapunzel, he treats me like a daughter… He even sings me lullabies at night.' Jack shot me a look, I shrugged. It had never been important for him to know.

'Really? What Lullaby?'

'Some Norse thingy. He's hasn't got a great voice, but the song is… Enchanting.'

'You sound like you're in love with him.'

'I'm not.'

'I think that if you can see nice things in his voice that even you say isn't that good, you're grasping for straws.' Rapunzel said, as if she was some kind of love expert.

'If anyone is grasping for straws around here, it's you.' Merida sounded like Jack had put a frog in her morning coffee. Jack winked at me.

'Oh, yeah? Prove it'

'I can prove that you are wrong about people who are in love corroding bad things to make them seem good.'

'How's that?' Rapunzel challenged.

'Believe me when I tell you this Rapunzel: If you knew half of the things that Jack had done in his childhood, you would not be able to say a single good thing about him.'

'Really?' Rapunzel sounded more interested than defiant. I had to restrain Jack to keep him from bursting into the room.

'You bet,' Merida laughed gleefully, 'In fact, I could tell you something that you don't know about him that he does now,' I imagined Rapunzel giving Merida her full, big-eyed, attention. Merida went for the kill, 'He doesn't wear a shirt under his hoodie' She said triumphantly. Rapunzel snorted loudly.

'You're not joking? Honest? How on earth do you know?'

'Well, one day we were having a fist-fight, nothing serious,' she added, apparently seeing Rapunzel's shocked face, 'Just playing, like we always do, when he suddenly told me that even if I won this fight, I would always lose on whole because I was a 'wimpy girl'.'

'So,' she continued, 'For lack of anything better to do, I grabbed the front of his hoodie and yanked him to his feet and started shaking him. Hard.' Merida paused to put emphasis on the last word.

'Usually, Hiccup would have butted in and told us to stop acting like kids' she said, relishing every word of the memory, 'but he was out shopping for veggies. So, after shaking him up considerably, I grabbed one of Hiccup's experimental knife-things from the table and chopped it right at the seams. I didn't go all the way, but I did go far enough to see that there was nothing under it. Then I stopped.' I liked Merida, but Jack could really use some backing up here.

'What Merida forgot to mention,' I said, walking through the curtain, 'Was that she almost cut Jack's ribcage in half. And while she was busy mending his hoodie all evening, I was busy stitching a line from his left hip to right under his ribcage.'

'Well you forgot to mention that Jack almost broke my jaw a soon as he was out of bed!' Merida squealed, her face turning pink.

'And you forget to mention the time that you splattered me with Hic's unfinished project!' Jack hollered gleefully, apparently forgetting that he would have happily punched Merida a minute before.

'My dear Jack!' Merida exclaimed, 'is it me who is losing my hearing, or have you forgotten the real reason that I splattered you?'

'It was true!' Jack yelled back, grinning wide. Then the room fell into utter silence.

'What did you say?' Merida asked, her voice thin and cold. Jack had hit the one subject that I could not remedy a fight over. And he kept going, apparently oblivious of the change in the room's mood.

'Hic-cup, Meri-da, sitting in a Tree. Kay-Aye-Ess-Ess-Aye-En-Gee' He recited the childish poem slowly, taunting her, slowly stepping back and waving his arms in front of himself. Nothing hurt Merida more than being told that she was in love with me. And Jack knew it.

I grabbed Merida's arms, doing the only thing that I could do in this kind if fight, 'Maybe we should leave, Merida…' I whispered, shooting Jack a look that said that I would take care of him later.

Merida nodded he head stiffly, said bye to Rapunzel, completely ignored Jack, and left the tower with me.

We walked home in silence.

That night, I planned my speech.

'He can't say things like that about me!'

'I know how you feel, Merida, but you can't let him know that it bugs you, it only makes him want to say it even more.'

'Augh! How many times will we have the same conversation! Just tell him to stop!'

'I do, he just… doesn't listen'

'Naturally he doesn't! He never listens to anyone!'

I decided not to tell her that she was the same about taking advice from people.

'Why does he like bugging me so much anyway? I mean, can't he find something better to do with his miserable little life?!'

I sighed, 'Merida, he just likes to bug you. Many times, it's just for different reasons. Sometimes because he's mad, sometimes because he's in a good mood. He does it when he scared or confused. It's just the way he does things. Today, he was simply trying to show off to Rapunzel. Look Merida, I want you to forgive him for what he did. Next time, I want you to turn around and let it bounce off your back.'

Merida's shoulders sagged as she turned away from me, 'What would you know about? He barely ever tries to annoy you.' She sighed, leaning against the window frame.

'Merida, he does annoy me sometimes. He says things that hurt me. I just learnt to let insults bounce when I was young. It hurts me when he says that we like each other, but the reason that he only bugs you about it is because he sees your face go red. He thinks that it's funny.'

She spun around, facing me. Her hands caught the window railing behind her. '_Do_ you like me?' she whispered, staring at me with those sky blue eyes.

I was caught completely off guard, gaping at her like an overgrown fish, 'What?' I croaked hoarsely.

'You heard me: DO YOU LIKE ME?' I blinked slowly.

'What?' I whispered again, my eyes wide.

'Don't play stupid with me, Hiccup. You know that I won't stand for it.' She let go of the rail, leaning close to me. 'Just a yes or no.'

She looked at me expectantly.

I looked back, most likely looking like a lost fox.

'Give me some time. I haven't exactly prepared for this topic' I said, deciding to go for the honest shot.

'Huh? Prepared? What do you mean? Why would you need to prepare?'

'You know,' I replied, 'Like I did last night for this conversation.'

'You prepare for conversations with me?' She asked, as if it was the most bewildering thing in the world. And here I was thinking all along that she knew.

'Of course I do! For both you _and_ Jack!'

She blinked, 'You do?' Now she was the one asking stupid questions, 'All the time?'

I shook my head, clearing the dizziness, 'I thought you _knew, _I only do it for things like these… Advice, I guess. And I really didn't expect this particular question for another ten years! Ten years!'

'What? The question about your liking me? Why didn't you expect that? I am sixteen, after all.' She said, eyes blazing.

'For your information,' I said, not able to believe that we were even talking about this, 'Most girl your age are asking their fathers if they can go out with _another guy_'

'You.' She pointed a finger at me, 'Are not _my_ father.' She finished firmly.

I grabbed her finger, pulling it down, 'It is considered rude to point at people like that, my dear Merida.' I said, mimicking a fatherly voice, 'And you yourself told Rapunzel that you and Jack thought of me as a father.'

'I was lying.' She said gently, wiggling her fingers around until she was holding my hand. Her hand was warm and soft, and I could feel her strong muscles pulsing against my hand through a thin layer of fat.

Then, I realized that holding a hand as thin as mine must have been like holding the hand of a zombie.

I was still trying to think of a tactful way to let go of her when the doorbell rang. _Saved by a Bell for the second time, _and then_, Note to self: Be more careful around Merida in the future, she is starting to get a little reckless._

That night, Jack and I discussed the topic.

'You need to stop getting on her nerves, Jack' I said, getting a little tired of the whole 'you need to' thing.

'How many times—'

'— are we going through the same thing! Gracious Jack! You sound just like Merida! Have mercy on me, the idiot who decided to adopt two rebellious children just like him and only a year younger! Shame on me!'

'Keep your head on Hiccup; it's not as bad as that.' His eyes were wide, and I realized that it was not a normal thing for me to yell at him. I massaged my forehead gently.

'Sorry, Jack. I'm just a little tired' I fibbed, staring at my bare feet.

'What did she say to you?'

'Huh?'

'While I was gone, what did Merida talk to you about?'

'Why?'

Jack hesitated, 'you look… tired'

'Pardon?'

'I don't know Hic… you look more tired than usual. You keep massaging your forehead… more than you usually do. Maybe I just didn't notice before now. Maybe because I've never seen you give up trying to fix us before… you just look tired.'

I sighed, 'She asked me if I liked her… I wasn't ready for the question… she just kept pressuring me… I didn't want to tell her the truth because I was scared that she would over-react and I didn't lie because I was scared of hurting her.'

'Why'd she ask?'

'Jack, is this really important?'

He gave me his sly smile, 'Yes, it is'

'Then remind me to tell you some other time, OK?' Jack smiled again. I sighed, rubbing my face, thinking of any way to distract him from the topic.

'Jack? Can you do me a favour? Just stop teasing her for… a week? Just a week, if you want to insult her, just let it go and walk away. Can you just give me a break for a week?'

'Why would I do that?' He asked, incredulous.

'Because she's not like us, when insults come her way, she has two options. Get angry, or start crying. Her mind doesn't even acknowledge the option of letting it bounce off her back. It's just not there. I need a week to work on her. Without your insults getting her angry.' I waited, holding my breath.

'Fine.' He said, getting up and leaving. I breathed a sigh of relief. So far, so good.

It was the third day of the week, Jack had stayed off of Merida's back, and she had stayed in manageable temper. When Jack felt like insulting her, he picked himself up and went to Rapunzel's house.

It was time to try talking to Merida.

She was lying on her stomach on the bed, painting her nails and trying to read _Tom Sawyer_ at the same time. When I came in, she flipped onto her back.

'Hell-o, Handsome, what did I do that I may be visited by His Royal Daddy-ness?'

I blinked, 'Wha-at?'

'Why'd you come? Am I in trouble? Why'd you wait for Jack to leave? Waddup?'

'I came to talk to you… You're not in trouble yet… I waited for Jack to leave because I wanted to talk to you… alone.'

'Why?'

'Why what?'

'Why did you want to talk to me _alone_?' I finally realized where she was going with this. I sighed, exhausted by having to go over this. I decided that it was about time that I got the romance thing straight.

'Merida, I have liked,' I paused, closing my eyes, '_loved_ you since… well, since you were eleven… and I have known that we would eventually talk about this. I…um… half-expected you to fall in love with another guy, you know, and I knew that I would probably kill myself about it. So I just told myself that I could admire you alone. I told myself that I would never talk about it to anyone. Not to you, not to Jack. I tried to make the emotions calm down, arguing with myself that eventually I would pass the stage. But, you know, it never happened. And I just grew to love you more. And…' I stopped, deciding to get to the point.

'Merida, I had made the decision not to go out anywhere with you... alone. I know that I don't want to… act on the fact that I like you. I want to keep it that way.' I stopped, drawing a deep breath. Hoping beyond hopes that she would understand me.

'What do you mean?' A freight train hit my hopes.

'I mean that I'm not going to go out with you, or stay in with you. I'm not going to treat you like a… girlfriend…?' I said awkwardly, wishing that I didn't sound so unsure.

After a pause, Merida got off the bed and walked to the main room. She observed the only picture we had on the wall. It was a picture of the three of us when we were young. I stood behind her, waiting. When she spoke next, she sounded choked.

'So how are you going to treat me?' She asked, she didn't turn around, and continued staring at the picture. In the photo, I was in the centre and had one arm around Jack's shoulder and the other around Merida's waist. Her head was rested on my shoulder. I wondered how much she had loved me way back then.

'Like I always have treated you. Like my sister, like Jack treats you.'

'So you don't love me?' Her voice had a quality that I had never heard in it before. I had no idea what was wrong with her.

'Merida, I love you more than anything. I just don't want to damage you.'

'By which you are gently telling me that you are not in love with me.'

I grabbed her shoulder, spinning her around to face me and grabbing both her shoulders, looking her in the eyes, 'Stop saying that! I love you, Okay? You're lovely. But I don't think that either of us are ready for roman—,' Merida grabbed me around the waist, digging her face into my chest.

I looked down at her, fighting the urge to wrap my arms around her, 'What are you doing?'

I felt her smile as she dug her nose into me, apparently trilled by the smell of me, 'I'm treating you like Jack treats me.' She said simply.

I could have cried, I was so frustrated with her. I didn't want my life to get any more complicated than it already was, and I definitely did not want someone as reckless as Merida to be my date as well as my daughter and sister.

I pushed her away roughly, holding her at arm's length. Away from me.

'Merida, please understand that I don't want trouble. I just have enough to do right now. Maybe I'll talk about this when we're older. There's just too much to be doing right now.' I let go of her, my arms dropping limply by my side.

Suddenly, Merida's eyes became shiny. It was the first time that I had seen her cry since she was lying there and crying over her mother. Other than that, I had only heard her muffled sobs from outside her room.

Her eyebrows pushed together at the centre of her face, creating deep creases. Below them, a single tear escaped the surface tension of the water in her eyes, leaving a sparkling streak down the left side of her face.

I never forgot that tear.

Merida raised her hands to face, covering her mouth.

I tried to fix my mistake, tried to talk my way out of the guilt that had set itself in my mind, 'Merida, I—,' Merida let out a loud sob, and with fat tears streaming down her face, she ran into her room. I couldn't stop her.

All I could do was watch as she ran inside and used her body to close it. I could hear her sobs as she crumpled to the floor on the other side. I sat in front of my side and started moaning.


End file.
